Various filters have been employed to remove at least some impurities from water or wastewater. Prior filters include but are not limited to upflow filters or upflow clarifiers, downflow filters, bi-flow filters and aerators. The present invention is directed to a filter of any suitable type and a vibrator operably associated therewith to enhance any one or more of numerous aspects of the filtration process including: (i) installation of the filter and/or various components thereof; (ii) servicing of the filter and/or components thereof; and, (iii) operation of the filter during a filtration cycle and a cleaning cycle.
By way of example only and not limitation, filters having granular beds have employed air scour devices to improve cleaning of the granular filter bed. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,534,202 and 5,673,481 disclose, inter alia, a known method of inserting an air grid into a filter bed. Specifically, these patents disclose fluidizing the filter bed to permit insertion of the air grid in the filter bed without removing filter media from the filter bed. While this was a significant improvement over prior systems, there are instances where fluidization of the filter bed is not practical and/or possible. One aspect of a preferred embodiment of the present invention is to use a vibrator to insert an air grid into a filter bed without fluidizing the filter bed and without removing filter media from the filter bed. It is important to note that the present invention is not limited to the use of a vibrator operably associated with a filter to insert an air grid into a filter bed. Rather, the present invention includes operably associating a vibrator with a filter to enhance any one or more of numerous aspects of the filtration process including: (i) installation of the filter and/or various components thereof; (ii) servicing of the filter and/or components thereof; and, (iii) operation of the filter during a filtration cycle and a cleaning cycle. This would include for example, using the vibrator to insert other elements into a filter bed without fluidizing the filter bed including but not limited to monitors for monitoring one or more conditions of a filter of the type disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,980,755 and 6,159,384. The present invention further includes but is not limited to operating a vibrator such that the vibrator imparts a vibrational force to the filter during at least a portion of the filtration cycle to improve particle to particle contact so that particles to be filtered can agglomerate. The present invention further includes but is not limited to operating the vibrator during at least a portion of a cleaning cycle to enhance agitation of the filtering element be it a granular bed, settling tubes, settling plates, membranes or other type of filter element to improve cleaning of the filter element.